Retired Fire Chief John Skillman was sworn into his new
office as village president at Tuesday's board meeting. (John Skillman)

Erin Sauder

Elgin Courier-News

A new village president has taken the reins in
Carpentersville.

At Tuesday's board meeting, retired Fire Chief John
Skillman was sworn into his new office, along with incumbent trustee Pat
Schultz and newcomer Diane Lawrence.

Trustee Kevin Rehberg, who also held onto his seat in
the April 4 election, could not be at the meeting due to a prior commitment.
He will be sworn in at a later date.

Skillman's swearing-in was met with cheers and a
standing ovation from the crowd, many who were from the Carpentersville Fire
Department.

Skillman presented outgoing Village President Ed Ritter
with a plaque. Ritter also received a standing ovation.

After taking his seat at the dais, Skillman praised his
predecessor "for everything he's done for the past 18 years of service."

Ritter, who served four years as a trustee before being
elected two terms as village president, also served on the village's
Planning and Zoning Commission, Business Development Commission and the
Audit and Finance Commission.

"Ed and I disagreed on some items but we always cared
about the village of Carpentersville and the good of the community,"
Skillman said.

He thanked his family, including his wife, Susan, "for
their unconditional support during the campaign," as well as his campaign
team.

"It was a lot of work and we worked hard," Skillman
said. "We met a lot of people going door to door in our community and we
learned a lot. Lot of positive energy out there."

He is looking forward to helping unify the village.

"We're going to bring this community together as one
instead of just saying east side or west side. We all live in one
Carpentersville and we want to be proud of that," he said.

Skillman's list of goals includes conducting an
internal employee survey and external survey for residents to help develop
and guide the strategic plan, improving communication between village
departments, encouraging community policing, strengthening code enforcement,
and bringing in more businesses.

"Hopefully then we can drop our taxes if we can keep
bringing in more revenue," he said. "That's our goal."

Erin Sauder is a freelance reporter for The
Courier-News.

IAFF/AFFI

Carpentersville Firefighters are members of the International
Association of Fire Fighters and the Associated Fire Fighters of
Illinois.